Xu Lin glanced at the Bronze Ghost Mask he had tossed aside, then returned his gaze to Jiang Luo.
She had already asked this question last time, and he had answered half-jokingly that he was the Holy Son of the Sunset Sect and also the Senior Brother of the Vast Dao Sect.
Back then, Jiang Luo hadn’t believed him at all and thought he was messing with her.
Now, setting aside the Grand Tournament, Jiang Luo had more or less recognized him. Asking again now carried a different flavor entirely.
This time, it felt less like a question and more like a confirmation.
The truth was already right in front of her, so what made Jiang Luo want to confirm it again? Xu Lin figured it probably had something to do with her heavy-hearted demeanor.
Xu Lin stopped flipping through the Jade Slips and faced Jiang Luo directly, looking her up and down.
“What?”
Jiang Luo turned her face slightly away. “Is there something weird on my face?”
“I just think you look especially cute today.”
“…”
An inexplicable compliment. Jiang Luo felt her ears grow warm and hurriedly suppressed the feeling, afraid he might notice.
“Where did that come from all of a sudden?”
She shot back stubbornly, pretending not to take it.
“Isn’t it already obvious whether I’m the Holy Son or not?”
Xu Lin also reined in the frustration in his heart.
Holy Son? More like hostage!
“But if you really are the Holy Son, and you want to learn cultivation techniques, you could just go to the Sect Master like Senior Sister Yang Yao.”
Jiang Luo found this peculiar about Xu Lin. “Isn’t the Sect Master better than the Scripture Pavilion?”
If the Holy Son and Saintess had to fight over techniques with inner and outer disciples, that would be ridiculous.
“Forget it.”
Xu Lin waved his hand. “I’m afraid she’ll eat me.”
Remembering how Xi Ranchen had looked when she offered to teach him a technique, he couldn’t help but shiver. That old woman definitely had ulterior motives.
Besides, if he searched for something related to Restrictions right in front of her, setting aside whether she’d be wary, she’d probably mock him first.
Jiang Luo looked at Xu Lin with a strange expression.
These days in the Cultivation World, it was common to hear about master-disciple relationships deepening, but Xi Ranchen was even more cold and aloof than Senior Sister Yang Yao. There was no way she’d take an interest in Xu Lin.
Seeing Jiang Luo’s expression clearly, Xu Lin knew exactly what kind of strange thoughts she was cooking up.
The corners of his mouth curled slightly, finding it amusing. “I already told you before, you just didn’t believe me.”
“But how was I supposed to know which of your words were true and which were false?”
Jiang Luo retorted. “Last time you also said you were the Senior Brother of the Righteous Path, saying something like… Senior Brother of some peak in the Vast Dao Sect.”
“Green Cliff Peak.”
Xu Lin replied calmly, his gaze fixed on Jiang Luo, closely watching her expression shift.
Up to now, although he didn’t know what was going on with Jiang Luo, he had more or less picked up on some clues.
But he wasn’t in a hurry to press her. He waited for Jiang Luo to speak.
“Oh, look at you—claiming to be Righteous Path and Demon Sect at the same time.”
Jiang Luo still found it impossible that these two identities could exist in the same person.
“Rather, you’re quite curious about my identity as Holy Son today.”
“Not really.”
Jiang Luo scratched her cheek awkwardly, strolling casually around the room, occasionally glancing at the Jade Slips Xu Lin had scattered about.
Her obvious attempt to cover up made Xu Lin shake his head inwardly.
“I just heard—just heard, mind you—that even in our Demon Sect, the Holy Son and Saintess within the same sect have a very special relationship. So I was just curious, how does Senior Brother view Senior Sister Yang Yao?”
“How do I view her?”
Xu Lin pressed his hand to his forehead and let out a sigh.
His demeanor was meant to avoid answering, but to Jiang Luo, it looked like he didn’t know how to put it into words.
“I mean, what do you think of Senior Sister Yang Yao?”
This time, Xu Lin truly didn’t know how to answer. His hand slowly slid down, covering his eyes, and he rubbed his temples.
“Then… let me ask differently.”
Jiang Luo picked up a Jade Slip, her eyes still darting toward Xu Lin. “I mean… what kind of girl does Senior Brother like? The type like Senior Sister Yang Yao?”
“No, and impossible.”
Xu Lin finally couldn’t help but answer.
If it weren’t for Yang Yao, would he have ended up in this situation? How could anyone ask him a question like that?
“I—I see.”
Jiang Luo felt like a thief who had successfully pulled off a heist, letting out a huge sigh of relief.
But at that moment, Xu Lin raised his hand, and a ripple of Spiritual Energy surged through the room, causing the scattered Jade Slips to clatter loudly. Then the doors and windows all shut.
The scene startled Jiang Luo. When she looked at Xu Lin again, his hand slowly lowered, and his expression had turned serious.
“Senior Brother, what’s wrong with you?”
Jiang Luo instinctively thought she had said something wrong.
“Talk.”
Xu Lin’s tone held not a trace of jest. “Who talked to you about me today?”
Jiang Luo was panicked, not understanding why Xu Lin had suddenly turned like this. “Senior Brother, I don’t quite understand what you mean.”
Xu Lin stood up before her, his eyes seeming somewhat dim in the lamplight.
Jiang Luo instinctively stepped back, curling up like a rabbit backed into a corner by a wolf.
“Let me guess. Which Elder put you up to testing me?”
The reason Jiang Luo had asked about his identity before was nothing more than the fact that he held the Sect Leader Token, which had given her a bit of a shock and naturally made her curious.
After the Grand Tournament, Jiang Luo should have long confirmed that he was the so-called Holy Son.
But today, she kept bringing it up repeatedly, as if deliberately confirming without missing any detail, making sure the Holy Son before her was undeniably him.
And then she brought up his relationship with Yang Yao—that truly made Xu Lin feel something was off.
It was as if someone was probing the relationship between him, the Holy Son, and the Saintess.
Granted, Jiang Luo had passed his test, but he hadn’t fully let his guard down around her either.
The way she was asking today felt like someone wanted to confirm his situation with Yang Yao, then arrange some kind of plan.
Or perhaps someone already knew he was actually a fake Holy Son, a hostage, and wanted to stir up trouble like Xi Ranchen?
This kind of scenario was like certain sect Elders with ulterior motives, trying to make some waves within the sect.
That was why Xu Lin’s first thought was whether Jiang Luo, who had just advanced to the Inner Sect, had been bought off these past couple of days.
“Or is it Sect Master Xi?”
Xu Lin pressed step by step, advancing toward Jiang Luo.
That possibility was actually the smallest, but for safety’s sake, Xu Lin added it anyway.
Even though she had witnessed Xu Lin’s extraordinary nature during the Grand Tournament, Jiang Luo still panicked when that pressure bore down on her.
Xu Lin advanced; Jiang Luo retreated.
With a thud, her back hit the door. With nowhere left to retreat, panic surged, and tears gathered in her eyes, blurring her vision.
During this time, although Xu Lin had occasionally been serious, he had never been like this—it truly scared her.